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Difference Between Network Address Translation (NAT) and Port Address Translation (PAT)

Network Address Translation (NAT): NAT, in which the Private IP address or local address is translated into the public IP address. NAT is used to slow down the rate of depletion of the available IP addresses by translating the local IP or Private IP address into a global or public IP address. NAT can be a one-to-one relation or many-to-one relation. 

 

Example:

Consider a home network with three devices: a computer, a smartphone, and a smart TV. Without NAT, each of these devices would need to have a unique public IP address to connect to the internet. However, with NAT, all of these devices can share a single public IP address and communicate with the internet by using their private IP addresses. When one of the devices sends a request to the internet, NAT translates the private IP address of the device into the public IP address of the network and sends the request over the internet.

Port Address Translation (PAT): In PAT, Private IP addresses are translated into the public IP address via Port numbers. PAT also uses IPv4 address but with port number. It have two types:

1. Static
2. Overloaded PAT 

Example:

Consider a home network with three devices: a computer, a smartphone, and a smart TV. Without PAT, each of these devices would need to have a unique public IP address to connect to the internet. However, with PAT, all of these devices can share a single public IP address and communicate with the internet by using unique port numbers. When the computer sends a request to the internet, PAT assigns it a unique port number and translates the private IP address of the computer into the public IP address of the network. The destination server on the internet receives the request and responds to the unique port number, allowing the computer to receive the response.

Difference Between Network Address Translation (NAT) and Port Address Translation (PAT):

Network Address Translation (NAT) Port Address Translation (PAT)
NAT stands for Network Address Translation. PAT stands for Port Address Translation.
In NAT, Private IP addresses are translated into the public IP address. In PAT, Private IP addresses are translated into the public IP address via Port numbers.
NAT can be considered PAT’s superset. PAT is a dynamic NAT.
NAT uses IPv4 address. PAT also uses IPv4 address but with port number.
It have 3 types: Static, Dynamic NAT and PAT/ NAT Overloading/IP masquerading. It also have two types: Static and Overloaded PAT.

Role of NAT and PAT in making internet routing efficient:

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